What are your thoughts and beliefs about teamwork? Here are a few teamwork-related posts you may have missed. Click to read the full message.
“A single leaf working alone provides no shade.”
“Vital to every operation is cooperation.”
Image from Unsplash by Mārtiņš Zemlickis
Striving for excellence is a powerful thing. It gives us all a sense of passion and purpose that is fundamental to living a happy, fulfilled life. There is, however, a dark side to the pursuit of excellence when we compare ourselves to others that have demonstrated superior skills and abilities.
In such cases, many of us don’t even bother suiting up and showing up to contribute our abilities and capacities for fear of looking bad and not keeping up.
Where and on what personal or professional issue is it time to summon the courage to show up and contribute your best, regardless of the outcome?
Image from medium.com
Who in your personal or professional life do you consider the most closed minded and stubborn? If you are like many of us, you might say, “Where do I start?” and be able to create a reasonably long list in mere minutes. What are the benefits and down sides of having such a closed-minded view of things?
On the other hand, who are the most open and receptive folks you know? Who are those who will try on the views and perspective of others, easily and fully? What are the benefits, and in the case of today’s quote, the downside of seeing the world primarily through the lens of those around you?
Imagine your mind is a screen door or window. How would the flow of air on a summer day be similar to the healthy flow of new ideas with a wider perspective foster more quality relationships and life success?
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Having a bias for being right and making others wrong seems to be one of the fundamental challenges facing the majority of people throughout history. Although most of us prefer to consider ourselves self-aware and open-minded, we often fall into the trap of seeing the mistakes of others far more often than viewing our own shortcomings.
Instead of closing our eyes to our own responsibilities for certain failures, what if we could shift our perspective from one of embarrassment and shame to one of learning and growth? How would this support the courage it takes to be vulnerable in those moments we fall short in our efforts?
Where and on what life issue are you, or perhaps someone you know, in denial about a significant mistake? What would be the benefit if you or they would more frequently embrace the life changing magic and important lessons in such situations?
What are the stories you tell yourself about yourself? Here are a few storytelling posts you may have missed. Click to read the full message.
“The greatest story you will ever tell is your own.”
“Stories can conquer fear, you know. They can make the heart bigger.”
“When I look back in five years, which of these options will make the best story?”
Where do you turn when you are seeking answers? Here are a few answer-related posts you may have missed. Click to read the full message.
“There is more than one right answer.”
“The reason I talk to myself is because I’m the only one whose answers I accept.”
In Seth Godin’s newest book, This is Marketing, he suggests that to be effective, all marketers must have the courage to create tension. Some people actively seek tension because it works to push or pull those we hope to serve over the gap from the present to a better future.
For those who resist change and prefer the relative comfort of the status quo, these influences/marketing messages fall on deaf ears. In such cases, the truth does not set us free, for fear of whatever future we wish to avoid.
Godin suggests that the status quo doesn’t shift because something is true, it shifts because culture changes, and the engine of culture is status.
Examine where you and others in your personal and professional communities embrace change and find yourself open and receptive to the abundance of marketing messages coming your way. Where might saying yes and embracing such new ways of thinking or acting improve your status?
Image from Unslpash by RawPixel
I hope you had a very happy holiday season, and that your new year is off to an outstanding start. Perhaps you are like most of us in that you set about to revisit your visions for the new year, and establish “stretch” goals for where you see yourself professionally and personally.
What progress, skills, habits, and achievements will put a big smile on your face? Perhaps most importantly, what daily changes will be required to realize what you deeply desire?
David Allen suggests, in today’s quote, that our visions and goals provide the leverage of our commitment to changing our present actions that will have us realize the futures we desire.
Consider displaying the following quote by Tuli Kupferberg in your personal or professional environment as a daily reminder to tap into one of the secrets to a better future:
“When patterns are broken, new worlds will emerge.”
Also consider writing it with the second part first:
“New worlds will emerge when patterns are broken.”
Are you prepared? Here are a few posts related to preparation you may have missed. Click to read the full message.
“I will prepare and someday, my chance will come.”
“You can’t reach for anything new if your hands are still full of yesterday’s junk.”
“If there is a single lesson that life teaches us, it’s that wishing doesn’t make it so.”
Image from Unsplash by Glenn Carstens-Peters
Elementary school, middle school, high school, and college are what we call traditional education. If you were lucky, perhaps your upbringing included books, encyclopedias, and of course, highly committed parents who emphasized education as a key doorway to a bright future.
For many, once we complete our traditional education, we slow down or even stop our efforts for continuous learning. Somehow that song, “No more teachers, no more books, no more teacher’s dirty looks” was ingrained in us, and we decided we were finished.
Consider yourself as your own home-schooling professor, creating the perfect curriculum just for you. The topics you choose are both important and relevant to a fully engaged and happy life. What could this self-driven education include that would result in a PhD in Thee?